I recently read my California Art Club Newsletter containing a tribute to Richard Schmid, who passed on earlier this year. He was a great artist who mentored many of today’s traditional painters. I watched him paint a portrait from life at one of the Plein Air conventions years ago. It … Read More
[Revised Jan, 2021] It is sometimes difficult to paint large paintings plein air. After all, when we set up our easels in the out of doors, factors like uneven ground, heaviness of large canvases and wind make the large painting effort problematic. Especially wind, which can come up at any … Read More
“If there is a common theme relating to the perception of color harmony, I believe that nature holds the key.” – Michael Wilcox I continue to explore what has been written about color harmony and find ideas to share with you here on my blog. “ Perception of color harmony … Read More
I have recently been perusing a book on color theory. It’s called Perfect Color Choices for the Artist, written by Michael Wilcox. There are many different theories about color harmony, and beauty is in the eye of the beholder. It appears “perfect” is a relative term. One system that I … Read More
Preparing to paint plein air requires some forethought and action. I need to have canvas, easel, and all my brushes and tools packed up to carry with me. Once on location, I need to evaluate the scene from various angles, to determine just what I want to paint, and how … Read More
Recently I have been cleaning out my paint tube drawer where I keep tubes of oil paint ready to be put out on my palette. I have several tubes that will no longer accept their caps, so the paint dries out! Here’s a tip: I have used the tip of … Read More
Spattering is a term which means spraying small droplets of paint onto the canvas. Spatter techniques in oil paintings can be applied to create a sense of mist, fog, ocean spray, or random wildflowers. I first became familiar with the use of spatter years ago with watercolor paint and nowadays … Read More
When I harvested a black walnut tree in Massachusetts to have a memory of my childhood home, I had no idea of the adventure ahead. Now I have a stack of rough sawn boards here in Soquel. I decided to make some frames for my paintings, but little did I … Read More
If you have purchased a painting from me, you may notice that their are several notations on the back side. These include notes about the painting, dates, signatures, and anything else an artist chooses to put there. They become part of the provenance of the painting, which is the record … Read More
In this post, I want to share some words about the types of canvases available for paintings, as well as about framing. I’ll try to answer of few of the questions that seem of interest to my studio visitors. People have been creating art by painting for thousands of years. … Read More
My Summer Ateliers (gatherings of artists to work together) are open to all former students and all members of the Santa Cruz Oil Painters. Anyone who has taken a class, workshop, or private lesson from me is welcome. These sessions are not a class situation, but rather an opportunity … Read More
Presentation is a term by which we mean primarily framing, plus where the painting is hung, and what surrounds it. Presentation provides the opportunity to enhance your paintings. Frames can quietly blend your painting in with other art works and furnishings within a room, or they can work to pop … Read More
Last weekend I spent an enjoyable three days with artists learning in my studio. I taught value relationships and painting composition. Value refers to the light and dark areas in a composition. We spent the first day painting a projected image in shades of gray. Then artists worked on their … Read More
Winter has clearly arrived here on California’s central coast. The rain is so good for all of the land; already we see the green beginning to arrive. Soquel Creek, flowing beneath my house and art studio, has become Soquel River! During these cool, wet days, I love to hole up … Read More